Planet 9

Was on a business trip in south Florida, one of our vendors asked if I would like to go to lunch. Hopped in his CS, and was smitten, hot looking car, agile, fast. After lunch on the way out of the restaurant he asked if I would like to drive back to the office...He didn't have to ask twice.
It was all over....

It all began with a guy I met whom I visited his home and he has about 25 cars, one of which is a Bugatti type 37 in his living room! He loaned me the Alan de Cadenet DVD series. After that I had this burning desire for another sports car.
My girlfriend said, "why don't you go and drive some cars?" That turned me loose and I searched and searched and ended up at the Lotus dealer in an 05 Elise. It was just amazing in its braking and power. I too did tons of research on that car and I was all along spooked about having another British car. Having owned 3 Triumphs and 2 Rovers I scanned for anything wrong with the Lotus. The thing I did not like about the Elise was that the power came on at 6,200 RPMS. It was cool yet weird. Really the car was meant to br driven at the higher revs and I wanted a daily driver. I remember seeing a guy one time on the ferry from Seattle to Bainbridge who had a Cayman. He was a cool guy and I started looking fom there.
I Went to the dealership and the sales guy, young like me, was great to deal with. He honestly started me out in a Cayman and then in a Cayman S. He laughed and said that I should start in the standard model cause to the other way wouldn't be a good idea. I got in the Cayman and only 100 feet out of the dealership I said to myself, "I could easily live with this!" We took it to the freeway and I was even more impressed.
Then we got into the S model. When I hit the higher revs and the power it sort of scared me and I thought, hmmm... I like that! I knew it then but I didn't tell the dealer.
I researched for options and what was in the area and found a 2007 CS that would satisfy me and called the dealer back and asked to have the one I spotted in thier inventory ready for me to drive that next Sunday. So we went over, she and I in the Cayman S, test drove it, and I teared up about a half mile into it and said to myself, "this is the one, I want this car!!!!". Back to the dealer and they were great to deal with.
So the deal was made, and since it was late on Sunday eve we left not getting the second key! I called the sales guy on his cell and he met us about 5 miles away from the deaership. I just love it!

This website did two things for me. First, it pushed me over the edge and got me to actually buy a Cayman. I was a persistent fence sitter, always wanting to buy another Porsche but I had a hard time overcoming the 'sensible' side of me that wouldn't allow a $70K luxury purchase. Reading all of the incredibly friendly and excited Cayman owners having so much fun without me convinced me to jump into the deep end.

Once I decided to actually buy a Cayman S, this site significantly influenced my options selection. I would not have chosen PASM, Sport Chrono, Full Leather, Deviated Stitching, BOSE Radio, or the XPA Steering wheel. But my interactions here with owners convinced me that I needed to add this $8,000 list of options.... My car stickered at $74K by the time I finished with the options, many of which my dealership had never mentioned to me, others that they clearly thought I was crazy for ordering (XPA and Deviated Stitching).

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Gator Bite
PCA Cayman Register Advocate

planet-9.com was the most informative website of those I visited during my search. I was looking for a sports car, not specifically a Porsche. I knew I wanted a car that could be driven on a track without modification. The majority of my research was in the media for comparative evaluations and my leanings toward Porsche was generated y the number of articles that compared other brand names in which I was interested. There were numerous articles that concluded that X was better than Y, but neither was a Porsche, so the vast majority of articles that concentrated on driving concluded that some type of Porsche was the best car. Within porsche types in the summer of '06, there was limited information on the Cayman, and Caymanclub filled a lot of the void on information about the car and the owners. I drove a Cayman as well as other types. The final decision was the attributes of the car and the type of people on planet-9.com. I felt that the car and the other owners fit my character the best.

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Kenny

2006 Arctic Silver CS 6M, PASM, Sport Chrono,, short shifter, 19" wheels, Pirrelli tires, Milltek Catbback, Softronic SRP and 4.2 Flash.

I have owned six P-cars trough the years including 2x356, 3x911, and a 930; and after driving the CS, I can tell you that the CS represents the "real thing" and the roots of the mark. The characteristics of the car handling/power/ratio/two seats/shape, even price... are the way a sport car should be.

I was out on a Sunday morning drive in some woods outside of Memphis. A black Cayman S came up behind me and stayed on my tail through some twisties and as soon as he got some straight road he blew my GTI into the weeds. I was like, "WTF was that?!?!?!?"

The rest is history - I looked up Cayman S on goggle when I got home and spent most of the rest of that Sunday morning reading up on this car. By the next Friday Red Pony was sitting in my driveway and the GTI was on the lot.

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Red Pony blazing across the plains!

Porsche's motorsport history.

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2008 Cayman S, Black, Floormats

I first wanted a Cayman back in what, 1997 or 1998?, when they first came out with the Boxster.

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’08 Cayman S, 6 Speed, PASM, Sport Chrono, Sport Seats & Steering Wheel, 19” Carrera Sport Wheels, PCM, Bose, Xenon, plus some other stuff not worth mentioning

Same thing happened to me, went to the dealership expecting to buy a slightly used 997 C4S, but then the salesmen suggested I take a test drive in the Cayman, the rest is history.

Also on a more personal note it has kind of allowed me to live out my father's dream with him. We were both in the market for a P-car, his 3rd, my 1st. He was set on the Cayman and I on the C4S. He passed away before getting to take the plunge, and now after having my Cayman for about a year I can see why he was so set on getting one of these cars.

I had started gathering info about a year and a half ago on several cars that I was interested in, ranging from sedans to sports cars. The cars I was most interested in at the time were the 911, Cayman S, Audi S5 and the new M3 coupe. The Porsche website was visited daily for dealer inventories and to use the car configurator. Unfortunately I didn't find out about CC.net till after my purchase.

I got the green light from the wifey the following spring and then I got serious. We went to the BMW dealer to look at the coupe, which was nice, but they weren't able to give test drives since the floor model was already sold and availability wasn't until mid summer. Similar for the S5. Dealer wouldn't have any until mid summer. One comment my wife made stuck with me... Why would you get those cars, they look like a sedan, I thought you wanted a sports car?

Off to the Porsche dealer. I drove the Cayman/Cayman S and the C2 and C2S, over the course of a week or two. I decided I liked the lower seating position of the Cayman and its gorgeous body work and compact dimensions compared to the 911's. I thought about the Boxster as well, but liked the coupe. Better structure and better longevity with the solid roof. (I've had problems with convertibles in the past.) I found the one with the right mix of options for me in Atlanta. My dealer had it hauled up and it was mine on May 5th, 2008.

Simply bliss!

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'08 Guards Red CS, 6 sp, 19" Carrera Classic Wheels, Black Standard Leather Interior, Heated Sport Seats, Bose Sound System, Sport Chrono, Auto Climate, Auto Dimming Mirrors, Xenon HID and uh a rocket booster, yeah that's the ticket!

I checked "dealer", "press", and "other" because it was the press's years of raving about the Boxster, not Cayman write-ups, that told me the Cayman would have to be great. The dealer pushed me over the edge by reminding me of, and being knowlegable about, factory delivery. I ordered in early 2006 so did not know of Cayman Club.

A friend of mine bought a Cayman a year before I did - I got tired of hearing him rave about it - then I drove a Cayman and I was sold!

After 10 years of 944 TurboS driving (mostly road, some track) I sought a newer car than the 944, and the 911, while a gorgeous and well made, always has the motor so far back as to cause me to feel it unbalanced - obviously many drivers (better than I) can make a 911 'dance' - but I'm a complete sucker for the stability and confidence I get from the mid-engined CaymanS. Have driven the Lotus ExigeS and loved that a lot, but the CaymanS seemed a nicer compromise between full-on driving machine and 'normal' car.

Now if only my wife would stop complaining about the 'bumby' ride...

The long racing history and reputation for engineering excellence were significant factors in my decision to buy my Cayman S at the dealer.

There are some good stories on this post ... and a lot of paths to a Cayman. Was anyone else shopping for a MiniCooper? Is anyone else working longer before retirement than planned before the stock market tumble? I pulled into the Porsche dealership a couple of months ago to look at a couple of used MiniCoopers that had been on the lot for a while. Then I wandered over to the Caymans and found a great deal on a brand new '07 Cayman (and for those following the warrenty posts, this dealer was very clear that the warrenty period had already been turned on). A test drive was all it took to decide that while I'm waiting for the value of my retirement portfolio to return to retirement level, I'd have a lot of fun of driving back and forth to work. I found the Cayman site after the purchse, and has just added to the experience -- I have learned a lot without tire or brake wear!

Like the CS. Always a porsche lover. Driving a porsche on blind date with wife many years ago.

Where is the choice for Myself and/or own thoughts?

Porsche automobiles in general are not bargains, necessities or "bang for the buck" type purchases. At this price point there are many choices and none are wrong. Instead buying a Porsche is really an emotional and personal purchcase. Therefore, in general what someone else thinks doesn't really matter to me.

As a long time Porsche owner, I just went and drove the Cayman S a couple of times and compared it to my then current 996. For the money I was willing to spend the Cayman S gave me what I wanted. It didn't matter if someone else thoguth it was great or horrible....I liked it. As for the options, I also got what I wanted and didn't care what others thought. Case in point..auto climate control...most think is necessary, in my experience, the Porsche auto climate control it is horrible...didn't get it and don't miss it. The reality with most options are they are just "fluff" to the car and are purely personal choices.

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Brian

The test drive. Until then it was just another sports car in the right price range I was looking at.

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Les

Balance. Looks. Modern technology.

My first Porsche was a 944 Turbo. The balance and handling are great.

I eventually got a Boxster. That turned me on to Porsche's mid-engine platform.

I wanted a modern Porsche that I could enjoy on the street and on the track. Drew@FCM convinced me that the Cayman S was the only choice.

I started out looking for a grey Cayman S to match my 944 Turbo and my Boxster. Then I saw one in speed yellow for sale at a local dealer. My wife liked the yellow better.

I had to mix it up a little (besides, speed yellow is much more visible on the track)

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Que-Man Ess
2006 Cayman S (Speed Yellow/Black)
2004 Boxster (Seal Grey/Black) Daily Driver
1989 944 Turbo (Stone Grey/Black) Track Beast
PCA National DE Instructor

After owning several Corvettes over the years and getting the thrill of 450HP out of my blood, I aspired something more classier that had everything the Corvette did not except for power. The fit and finish, style, seats, smooth shifting manual transmission compared to the notchy Corvette, and not seeing one on the road everytime I went out for a ride pretty much swayed me. Perhaps in the future, Porsche will increase the horsepower considerably and I can have the best of both worlds. If not, there is always turbo charging when the warranty is up.

Just brought my 08 cs home this afternoon after 200mi "longway home".
Arctic Silver. Can't stop looking at it in the garage!